A disturbing video shared by Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman showing him groping and caressing his own mother appears to be part of a bad joke.
A source with direct knowledge of the situation told Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Pirates beat writer Jason Mackey confirmed that the elderly "woman in the video is his mom" and that Chapman was having an "innocent family moment" in which he joked that he was a "mommy's boy."
"On the Chapman stuff, per source with direct knowledge: Woman in the video is his mom. Was an 'innocent family moment' where they joked Aroldis was a 'mommy's boy,' and she couldn't ween him from breastfeeding. In the video, he's seen acting like an infant," Mackey wrote on his X account. "My own $0.02 is that it still comes across as very weird. Cultural differences or not, tough for anybody online or anywhere to make that connection."
The clip, which was shared to Chapman's verified Instagram account Tuesday (March 12), shows the 36-year-old lying on the shoulder of his mother while grabbing her breast and rubbing her mid-section on a couch. The woman initially pushes Chapman's hand away at first as they and the person filming the strange interaction speak Spanish.
Several internet sleuths presumed, with past photographic evidence, that the woman in the video was Chapman's mother prior to Mackey's confirmation. Chapman is a two-time World Series champion with the 2016 Chicago Cubs and 2023 Texas Rangers, having been acquired by both teams in mid-season trades, as well as a seven-time All-Star during stints with five MLB teams including the Cincinnati Reds, New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals.
The Cuban native was previously accused of attacking and choking girlfriend -- now the mother of his child -- during an alleged incident in which the pitcher allegedly fired eight gunshots in October 2015. Florida police never filed charges against Chapman due to inconsistencies with witness reports, however, he was suspended for the first 30 games of the 2016 MLB season.